Persian forms an ordinary affirmative command to one familiar person from the present stem, normally with the prefix بـ and no personal ending: خواندن (خوان) → بخوان “read,” نوشتن (نویس) → بنویس “write.” The form does not come from the infinitive or the past stem. That fact places the imperative inside the same present-stem system as میخوانی and بخوانی, rather than in a separate list of “command words.”
This page teaches the familiar singular form used with تو. The same command addressed to several people or politely to one person adds ـید, as explained on Polite and Plural Imperatives in ید.
The core form: بـ + present stem
For an ordinary simple verb, retrieve the present stem, attach بـ, and do not add the second-singular ending ـی.
| Infinitive | Present stem | Familiar singular imperative | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| خواندن | خوان | بخوانbekhân | read |
| نوشتن | نویس | بنویسbenevis | write |
| خوردن | خور | بخورbekhor | eat |
| گرفتن | گیر | بگیرbegir | take / get |
| دیدن | بین | ببینbebin | see / look |
نشانی را روی کاغذ بنویس.
neshâni râ ru-ye kâghaz benevis.
Write the address on the paper. (familiar singular; neutral standard)
قبل از خرید، برچسبش را بخوان.
qabl az kharid, barchasb-ash râ bekhân.
Read its label before buying it. (familiar singular; careful spoken standard)
این کلید را بگیر و در را باز کن.
in kelid râ begir-o dar râ bâz kon.
Take this key and open the door. (familiar singular; two coordinated commands)
The absence of ـی matters. بخوانی is a second-singular subjunctive meaning “that you read,” while بخوان directly tells the addressee to read. Compare the full mood paradigm on Present Subjunctive Formation.
What an imperative can do
“Imperative” describes a verb form, not one fixed degree of force. In an emergency it gives an urgent order; in a recipe it gives neutral instructions; between friends it can offer, invite, advise, or grant permission. Voice, relationship, particles, and context determine how it lands socially.
مواظب باش، پله خیس است!
movâzeb bâsh, pelle khis ast!
Be careful—the step is wet! (urgent warning; familiar singular)
اول پیاز را خرد کن، بعد روغن را اضافه کن.
avval piyâz râ khord kon, ba'd rowghan râ ezâfe kon.
First chop the onion, then add the oil. (neutral instructional register)
اگر سردت است، این ژاکت را بپوش.
agar sard-at ast, in zhâkat râ bepush.
If you're cold, put on this jacket. (friendly offer/advice)
English speakers sometimes assume that a form translated with an exclamation mark must be harsh. Persian writing behaves more subtly. An exclamation mark foregrounds urgency or emotion; a full stop suits calm written instructions. Neither mark changes the verb’s morphology.
Objects and sentence position
Persian is normally verb-final. A specific direct object with را comes before the imperative: پنجره را ببند, not an English-order sequence corresponding to “close the window.” Indirect objects and adverbials also normally precede the final verb.
فایل نهایی را تا ظهر برای من بفرست.
fâyl-e nehâyi râ tâ zohr barâ-ye man beferest.
Send me the final file by noon. (familiar singular; neutral standard)
چراغ آشپزخانه را هم خاموش کن.
cherâgh-e âshpazkhâne râ ham khâmush kon.
Turn off the kitchen light too. (familiar singular; neutral standard)
A subject pronoun is usually unnecessary because the situation identifies the addressee. تو can appear for contrast, insistence, or a change of addressee—“you do this”—but routine تو بخوان sounds more marked than bare بخوان.
Compound verbs: inflect the light verb
In a light-verb construction, the nonverbal element stays unchanged and the imperative morphology belongs to the light verb. Thus گوش دادن → گوش بده, تصمیم گرفتن → تصمیم بگیر, and تلفن زدن → تلفن بزن.
به پیام آخر دوباره گوش بده.
be payâm-e âkhar do-bâre gush bede.
Listen to the last message again. (familiar singular; compound verb)
وقتی رسیدی، به من تلفن بزن.
vaqti residi, be man telefon bezan.
Call me when you arrive. (familiar singular; everyday careful speech)
With the very frequent light verbs کردن and شدن, neutral modern Persian usually omits affirmative بـ: باز کن، صبر کن، آماده شو. Forms with بکن or بشو also exist, often with extra insistence or in particular spoken contexts, but adding بـ mechanically to every compound is not a good neutral rule.
کمی صبر کن؛ الان برمیگردم.
kami sabr kon; alân bar-mi-gardam.
Wait a little; I'll be right back. (familiar singular; neutral spoken standard)
Lexical preverbs and vowel-initial stems
Some verbs already begin with a lexical preverb, as in برگشتن and برداشتن. They do not take an extra imperative بـ: برگرد، بردار. Here the initial letters belong to the dictionary verb, not to an optional command prefix.
کتابت را بردار و با من بیا.
ketâb-at râ bar-dâr-o bâ man biyâ.
Pick up your book and come with me. (familiar singular; prefixed and vowel-initial verbs)
Vowel-initial present stems show established surface forms: آمدن (آی) → بیا, آوردن (آور) → بیاور, افتادن (افت) → بیفت, ایستادن (ایست) → بایست. The imperative بایست is read be-ist; do not confuse it with modal بایست bâyest “must.” Learn these spellings with the stem; do not insert a space or ZWNJ between the imperative prefix and the verb. The most frequent exceptional commands receive a focused treatment on Irregular Imperatives.
Stress and register
In a regular simple command, affirmative بـ normally carries the main word stress: بِخَوان، بِنِویس، بِگِیر. Persian script does not show that stress. Everyday Tehran speech (informal, regional: Tehran) may change the prefix vowel or reduce part of a high-frequency form, such as careful برو bero versus conversational boro. This pronunciation does not authorize random vowel changes in every verb.
The familiar singular is appropriate with children, close friends and relatives, or anyone mutually addressed as تو. It can sound presumptuous toward an unfamiliar adult. Social distance is handled chiefly by the ـید form and by softening phrases, not by changing the command into an English-style infinitive.
A short exchange
یک لحظه اینجا بایست؛ کیفم را پیدا نمیکنم.
yek lahze injâ be-ist; keyf-am râ peydâ nemi-konam.
Wait here a moment; I can't find my bag. (familiar singular; careful spoken standard)
باشه، آرام بگرد و عجله نکن.
bâshe, ârâm begard-o ajale nakon.
Okay, look calmly and don't rush. (informal response; affirmative and negative commands)
Common Mistakes
1. Using the infinitive as a command
❌ این فرم را پر کردن.
Incorrect — کردن is an infinitive and does not directly command the addressee.
✅ این فرم را با خودکار پر کن.
in form râ bâ khodkâr por kon.
Fill out this form with a pen.
2. Building the command from the past stem
❌ جواب را بنوشت.
Incorrect — نوشت is the past stem; the imperative uses present stem نویس.
✅ پاسخ کوتاهی زیر پیام بنویس.
pâsokh-e kutâhi zir-e payâm benevis.
Write a short reply under the message.
3. Keeping indicative می in an imperative
❌ لطفا این بخش را میخوان.
Incorrect — a direct affirmative command does not keep indicative می.
✅ خواهش میکنم این بند را با دقت بخوان.
khâhesh mi-konam in band râ bâ deqqat bekhân.
Please read this paragraph carefully.
4. Adding بـ before a lexical preverb
❌ پیش از غروب ببرگرد.
Incorrect — برگشتن already contains lexical برـ; no additional بـ is added.
✅ پیش از تاریک شدن هوا برگرد.
pish az târik shodan-e havâ bar-gard.
Come back before it gets dark.
5. Mixing a singular command with a plural addressee
❌ بچهها، آرام بنشین.
Incorrect for addressing the whole group — singular بنشین selects one familiar addressee.
✅ بچهها، روی صندلیهایتان بنشینید.
bachche-hâ, ru-ye sandali-hâ-yetân beneshinid.
Children, sit in your chairs. (plural standard)
Key Takeaways
- The familiar singular imperative normally uses بـ + present stem with no ـی.
- Specific objects and other complements ordinarily precede the final command verb.
- In compound predicates, command morphology belongs to the light verb; neutral کردن and شدن compounds often omit بـ.
- Lexical preverbs block an additional command prefix: برگرد، بردار.
- Context and address determine whether the same imperative is an order, instruction, warning, offer, or invitation.
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Start learning Farsi →Related Topics
- The Present StemA1 — Learn why Persian present stems must be stored with each verb, recognize common alternations, and use the stem in present-system forms.
- Compound Verbs in the PresentA1 — Conjugate Persian compound verbs by keeping the nonverbal element stable and placing present-tense marking on the light verb.
- Present Subjunctive FormationA2 — Form the Persian present subjunctive with بـ, the present stem, and personal endings, including vowel allomorphy, preverbs, compounds, irregulars, and stress.
- Polite and Plural Imperatives in یدA2 — Use the shared ـید imperative to address several people or one person politely, and soften requests naturally.
- Negative Imperative with نA2 — Form Persian prohibitions with نـ, place negation correctly in simple and compound verbs, and control their social force.
- Irregular Imperatives برو، بیا، بگو، بدهA2 — Master four high-frequency Persian commands whose present stems, vowel junctions, and spoken forms require special attention.